With discovery being in a couple of days, specifically the interrogatories and documents. Instead of complying, defendants filed a Motion to Extend Discovery.
I filed an objection to the because they failed to provide any specific reason for the extension as required under Rule 6(b) of the North Carolina Rules of Civil Procedure. Their vague request came after a repeated pattern of delays, including filing improper motions, failing to respond to my amended complaint, and claiming new counsel was retained without providing proof.
What’s more, the motion was filed by prior counsel—not the supposed new attorney—further casting doubt on the legitimacy of their claims. Granting the extension would have prejudiced me by pushing discovery past the trial date and denying my right to due process once again. The information I request didn’t create any burden on her if they actually existed.
I had met every deadline and was actively working to move the case forward while they continued to delay without accountability.
NC Rules of Professional Conduct Rule 4.3. Fairness to Opposing Party and Counsel
A lawyer shall not:
(a) unlawfully obstruct another party’s access to evidence or unlawfully alter, destroy or conceal a document or other material having potential evidentiary value.
A lawyer shall not counsel or assist another person to do any such act;
(d) in pretrial procedure,
(1) make a frivolous discovery request,
(2) fail to make a reasonably diligent effort to comply with a legally proper discovery request by an opposing party